Room air conditioning arrangement with porous walls



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a 7 e 7 a J. M. A. TEIXEIRA Filed March 11, 1965 ROOM AIR CONDITIONING ARRANGEMENT WITH POROUS WALLS Jan. 24, 1967 I JOSE MIGUEL ARAUJO TEIXEIRA INVENTOR. BYM ATTORNEY United States Patent M corporation of Portugal Filed Mar. 11, 1965, Ser. No. 438,877 Claims priority, application Germany, Mar. 12, 1964,

3 Claims. '01. 93-31 The present invention relates to a room air conditioning arrangement, particularly for home air conditioning.

Air conditioning arrangements for dwelling spaces, particularly home air conditioning arrangements usually provide a means to regulate the temperature within the room, as well as the humidity of the air therein. In order to regulate the temperature, heating elements such as radiators, or cooling units are used. Entire room surfaces have already been used as cooling, or heating surfaces, for example by imbedding heating or cooling coils in the ceiling or in the floor. Other air conditioning arrangements utilize exchange of air in the room, in which cooled, or heated air is introduced therein and exchanged for the air in the room itself. This system permits also a regulation of the humidity within the room, by incorporating in the air exchange unit humidifying or dehumidifying devices.

Known air conditioning arrangements usually cause a substantial motion of air within the room, either by utilizing the air therein as a means to add, or remove heat in the room, or by heating or cooling selected areas within the room, for example by means of a radiator, whereby necessarily drafts and air currents will be generated. Such drafts are often undesirable for the persons in the room particularly when resting. Exposure to a blast of warm air causes rapid evaporation and to some people, discomfort.

It is the object of the present invention to provide a room air conditioning arrangement, particularly for living space, in which the air conditioning occurs practically without noticeable exchange of air.

It is another object of the present invention to provide an air conditioning arrangement which provides for an exchange of air, without causing drafts.

Briefly, in accordance with the invention, air is conducted in a known manner through ducts provided within the walls, and if desired also within the ceiling and the floor, the air movement being so arranged that adjacent ducts have air moving therethrough in opposite direction. The inner wall structure is made of such a material that it has good heat conductivity, so that the entire wall surface, and if desired also the entire ceiling and floor, will reach a temperature in such a manner that heat exchange between the wall and objects, air in the room, or people therein occurs essentially by means of radiation from the wall surface from the wall itself. Thus, the heat radiation per unit area is low, so that there is practically no noticeable motion of the air. When cooling is desired, heat is removed not by convection utilizing the air as a carrier, but rather by radiation into the wall. If at the same time, humidity of the air is also to be affected, then the material of the wall between the ducts and the inner surface in the room can be arranged to have such porosity, that with a predetermined operating pressure of the air within the ducts, equalization of the vapor pressure of the air in the room and in the duct occurs without however causing a substantial motion of air through the wall itself. It is also possible to obtain a limited exchange of air in the room by forming the region of the Wall between the ducts and the inner surface of such porosity, that such air exchange can be effected. Preferably, air

- Patented Jam-.24, 1967 motion in the ducts isycaused by suction, that is at a pressure less than atmospheric, so that a pressure drop from the room to the ducts is obtained. In order to avoid drafts within the room itself, and to limit the exchange of air to the wall'surfaces, it is possible'to arrange adjacent ducts within the wall alternatively with pressure in excess, and below atmospheric. Thus, the air which is forced from the overpressure duct into the room is removed by the next adjacent underpressure duct, and air motion is confined essentially to the region of the wall itself.

The structure, organization and operation of the invention will now be described more specifically in the following detailed description with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 illustrates, in schematic form, the wall at the corner, partly in plan view and partly in section; and

FIG. 2 is a section along line IIII of FIG. 1.

Referring now to FIG. 1, a wall 1 of a room has imbedded therein ducts 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6. The air in ducts Z, 4, and 6 is arranged to pass through the ducts in the direction opposite to that in ducts 3 and 5, as illustrated by the arrows in FIG. 1. The wall is formed of hollow stone, or brick. The region towards the outside of the wall or of the building, where no heat exchange is desired, and the side portions of the wall consists of a good heat insulating material, for example high aggregate concrete. The region 9, which faces the wall to be air conditioned, consists of a material which has such thickness and such heat conductivity characteristics, that the wall region 9 will reach a uniform, predetermined temperature, which Will depend upon the temperature of the air through the ducts. Wall regions 9 can further be made of a material of such porosity, that the vapor pressure of the air circulating within the ducts 2-5, and the vapor pressure within the room itself can equalize. By making the wall even more porous, and passing air through the ducts at a pressure in excess, or below the air pressure in the room itself, an exchange of air through the wall itself can be obtained. The wall regions 9 of the wall itself can be integral with the entire wall, or the material of region 9 can be built of separate, preformed sheets, or blocks. Thus, the outside wall region 7, and the sides regions 8 between the ducts may be precast or built from brick or cement blocks in the conventional manner, leaving a space for the ducts 2-6. The ducts are then closed off by the inner wall units 9, of difierent and much more porous material.

By making wall sections 9 comparatively thick, and locating the ducts closely together, the uniform heat exchange, and if desired also humidity and air exchange can be obtained throughout the entire wall surface, thus providing for air conditioning within a room without causing drafts.

Wall 9 may be built of gypsum blocks, or plaster, or unglazed brick, or similar material which has not been compacted or provided with a hard finish.

I claim:

1. A room air conditioning arrangement for use in a building structure having walls defining a room, parallel ducts formed in said walls for passage of air therethrough, the wall region between said ducts and the outside of said building structure being of poor heat-conducting material, the wall region between said room and said ducts being of good heat-conducting and porous material permitting limited equalization of pressure of the air in the room and the ducts; and air of predetermined temperature being circulated in said ducts, the circulation of the air in adjacent ducts being in opposite direction and the exchange of air from said ducts to said rooms being only through said porous wall, whereby the temperature in said room will be affected by the radiation of heat from or into the Wall and will be determined by temperature of the air being circulated in said ducts in opposite direction.

2. Arrangement as claimed in claim 1, the pressure in alternate ducts being less than atmospheric pressure and the pressure in ducts intermediate said alternate ducts being greater than atmospheric pressure.

3. Air conditioning arrangement as claimed in claim 1, the air pressure in at least some of said ducts being less than atmospheric pressure so that air from said room is sucked into the ducts having air at less than atmospheric pressure.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS Hellstrom 9831 Trowbridge 98-31 Grossinger 9831 Thompson 98-31 Haines 9831 Alderman 23769 MEYER PERLIN, Primary Examiner. 

1. A ROOM AIR CONDITIONING ARRANGEMENT FOR USE IN A BUILDING STRUCTURE HAVING WALLS DEFINING A ROOM, PARALLEL DUCTS FORMED IN SAID WALLS FOR PASSAGE OF AIR THERETHROUGH, THE WALL REGION BETWEEN SAID DUCTS AND THE OUTSIDE OF SAID BUILDING STRUCTURE BEING OF POOR HEAT-CONDUCTING MATERIAL, THE WALL REGION BETWEEN SAID ROOM AND SAID DUCTS BEING OF GOOD HEAT-CONDUCTING AND POROUS MATERIAL PERMITTING LIMITED EQUALIZATION OF PRESSURE OF THE AIR IN THE ROOM AND THE DUCTS; AND AIR OF PREDETERMINED TEMPERATURE BEING CIRCULATED IN SAID DUCTS, THE CIRCULATION OF THE AIR IN ADJACENT DUCTS BEING IN OPPOSITE DIRECTION AND THE EXCHANGE OF AIR FROM SAID DUCTS TO SAID ROOMS BEING ONLY THROUGH SAID POROUS WALL, WHEREBY THE TEMPERATURE IN SAID ROOM WILL BE AFFECTED BY THE RADIATION OF HEAT FROM OR INTO THE WALL AND WILL BE DETERMINED BY TEMPERATURE OF THE AIR BEING CIRCULATED IN SAID DUCTS IN OPPOSITE DIRECTION. 